Staff Reporter<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BRITISH Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has warned that the UK will stop granting visas to people from Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo if their governments do not rapidly improve co-operation on removals of illegal immigrants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere the barrier to a return is not the individual nor the UK Government, but the receiving country, we will take action. I can announce today that we have told Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Namibia that if they do not comply with international rules and norms, we will impose visa penalties on them. I am sending a wider message here. Unless other countries heed this lesson, further sanctions will follow. Much of the delay in our removals, however, comes from the sclerotic nature of our own system. In March this year, the appeals backlog stood at 51,000 cases,\u201d Mahmood said, speaking on Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The anticipated visa ban would initially target VIP visa categories such as diplomats, senior civil servants, among others, impacting the ease of doing business and straining political ties as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking at the House of Commons, Mahmood said that the burden that has fallen on the UK has been heavy, adding that 400,000 people have sought asylum in the last four years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOver 100,000 people now live in asylum accommodation, and over half of refugees remain on benefits eight years after they have arrived. To the British public who foot the bill, the system feels out of control and unfair. It feels that way because it is. The pace and scale of change has destabilised communities. It is making our country a more divided place. There will never be a justification for the violence and racism of a minority. But if we fail to deal with this crisis, we will draw more people down a path that starts with anger and ends in hatred,\u201d Mahmood said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She added that a new statement on asylum policy will aim, firstly, to reduce illegal arrivals into the country, and secondly, to increase removals of those with no right to be there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Mahmood, nearly 40% of illegal immigrants come on small boats and via perilous Channel crossings, but a roughly equal number arrive legally on a visitor, work or study visa, and then go on to claim asylum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey do so because refugee status is the most generous route into this country. An initial grant lasts five years, which is then converted almost automatically into permanent settled status,\u201d Mahmood said, adding that the country will reverse this and make refugee status temporary, not permanent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A grant of refugee status will now last two and a half years, not five, and will be renewed only if it is impossible for a refugee to return home. Permanent settlement will now come at 20 years, not five.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Namibian Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation has yet to respond to queries sent by Informant\u00e9 on how the country would handle the possible threat of a visa ban for Namibian citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Picture for illustrative purposes only. Photo: Contributed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Staff Reporter BRITISH Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has warned that the UK will stop granting visas to people from Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo if their governments do not rapidly improve co-operation on removals of illegal immigrants. \u201cWhere the barrier to a return is not the individual nor the UK Government, but …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":385716,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-385715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n